Book Two: Tom Marvolo Riddle's Diary
by Storiestoread
Summary: The second book to the rewritten Harry Potter Series. Vanice Crypton loves to read. Draco Malfoy doesn't. Lydia Serpance prefers not to...and you know about Crabbe and Goyle. But when the Salazar Five find Tom Riddle's Diary, secrets, relationships and chambers will be opened. But then again, an ordinary year at Hogwarts. *Disclaimer: Do not own HP, just new plot
1. The Old Battered Diary

"HAPPY BIRTHDAY ALETTA!"

Confetti, balloons, streamers and pixie dust went flying, covering each and every one us from head to toe. Aletta's cake was three feet high with two layers, buttercream pink frosting designed to have edible flowers blooming from here and there, and on the inside was pure vanilla goodness, all flawlessly made for her eighth birthday.

"Van, you're totally covered in pixie dust." Lydia laughed, brushing off a long streamer that had caught in her hair.

"I'm not the only one." I smiled, picking off the extra confetti in Aletta's dress.

Beside us, there was a towering pile of large presents, all beautifully wrapped, topped with giant bows and in bright vivid colors.

"May I open them now, Daddy?" Aletta asked him, standing up and looking over at them.

Looking away from the conversation he was having with Mr. Serpance and Mr. Malfoy, he nodded and smiled, chuckling.

"Go ahead dear. Open them all, but make sure you - "

"Yes, I'll thank everyone." She giggled, running over to the first one, which was a tall orange wrapped one with a fairly big blue bow.

I rushed over to check the tag before she ripped it to shreds. It was from the Malfoy's. Taking a step back, I watched as she struggled to pull off the bow, and Draco walked over in his nice black clothes, tugged gently at the end of the ribbon and the box fell away elegantly.

Inside was revealed to be a new miniature Nimbus Two Thousand and One, being held up by a polished stand. To my left, my Mother began thanking Narcissa, who was telling her that it wasn't necessary. I could hear my father doing the same, while Lucius was saying it was the newest model and he had it made for her especially.

I gave Aletta a nod and she went to give thanks, and I looked at Draco and shook my head, smiling. He was looking smug.

"That was a very nice present, Draco." I said, thanking him.

"It was nothing really. I've got my own at home." He said, puffing out his chest a bit.

Holding back the temptation to roll my eyes in the same room as my parents, I chuckled and looked at Crabbe and Goyle, who were stuffing their faces with food while their mothers were frowning disapprovingly.

I felt a tap on my shoulder and saw that it was Lydia, who had a triumphant smirk on and was holding a lovely medium sized box in her hands. Once she noticed I was watching, she went and sauntered off to Aletta, giving her the gift and patting her head. Interested, I saw her open it and there was a large silver hair brush, with a delicately carved handle.

"Ta-da!" Lydia giggled, waiting for an excited reaction. All she got was a puzzled look from Aletta and a scoff from Draco.

"Really? Like, here, watch." She huffed when no one reacted. "It's an Insta-Style Brush."

Taking the brush and turning Aletta around, she separated her raven hair into two parts. Then, on one, she brushed the hair down and it became instantly straighter and shinier. She did the same on the left, but instead it bounced and curled itself up into gentle locks of curled hair.

The mothers all clapped and smiled.

"What a lovely gift for her, Lydia." My mother said, admiring it.

"How very sweet." Narcissa agreed, smiling.

"That's actually really nice." I pointed out.

Aletta became instantly overjoyed once she understood and took the brush, taking turns changing the styles of her hair.

"I knew she'd like it." Lydia sighed proudly.

Afterwords, Crabbe and Goyle presented her with several books that popped to life and played out on the pages, which Aletta loved, and the parents gave her extra clothes. Finally, it was my turn.

"Just one more gift." I said, snapping my fingers.

Skibby popped to my right and I looked down at him.

"Her present. Now." I ordered, and he nodded, then silently disappeared, only to come back several seconds later.

He was holding a large golden cage with an emerald velvet cloth over it. Flutters came from inside and Aletta jumped to me, giving me a hug.

"Thank you-thank you-thank you!" She squealed, hardly keeping still.

"You don't even know what's in it yet!" I laughed, putting her on the floor. "It's a rat."

Her smile flickered and Lydia elbowed me.

"That's _so_ not a good thing to like, give a kid!" She hissed.

Placing my hand on the top of the cloth, I smirked and shrugged my shoulders.

"I suppose you're right...I hope this is better then."

I yanked the emerald cover off, and a white and toffee colored barn owl was shown, pecking at its feathers and hooting.

"You're always playing with Tawn, so I decided to go get you your own." I said, seeing the look of joy on her face.

"Vanice, that is so thoughtful of you." My father praised.

"What are you going to name it?" Asked Lucius kindly.

"I'll name it...Bartholomew." She giggled, coming up with the most creative name.

Everyone laughed, and the dinner ended, but not the party. The parents went off to speak in private, Aletta went to play with her new toys with Tawn and Dember, and the five of us walked to my room, making jokes and eating cake.

"Don't drop any, Goyle." I warned, sitting next to Lydia on my bed.

"I won't."

"Well I have something important to say." Draco announced, taking his last bite of the buttercream cake.

We looked at him for a while, waiting for him to speak when Lydia groaned.

"Are you going to like, say anything?" She said, crossing her arms.

"Of course not!" He scoffed. "This is so important, that it needs to wait so the tension will build."

"That doesn't make sense." Said Crabbe, putting his empty plate beside the rest.

"I want tarts..." I murmured, tapping my chin. "SKIBBY!"

Not noticing I had made everyone jump, I smiled as my house elf appeared with a platter of fresh tarts.

"H-here you go Miss C-Crypton." He stammered, placing the platter on my glass table and picking up the dirty plates. "An-n-nything e-else?"

"That's all. You can leave."

"Can you believe we're going back to school in like a week?" Lydia asked us, taking a tart and biting into it.

"Don't even remind me Lydia." Draco said, sitting down on my white couch.

"Why is that?" I asked, raising an eyebrow.

"Like, because Dobby hasn't been there when Dracey like needs something." Lydia explained, looking at her nails. "And that totally gets him worried and mad, 'cause who will pack his stuff?"

As I was about to make the point that house elves are around for that, there was three soft knocks at my door and I quickly knew who it was.

"Come in, Aletta." I told her.

Holding out the arm that her owl was perched on, she swiftly walked in and closed the door behind her, making the grand impression she was hiding something.

"What's like, wrong?" Lydia asked her, laying her head on my lap.

"Guess what I heard our Mum's and Dad's talking about?" She asked us, giggling and lowering her voice.

"What?" Said Goyle.

"Well," she said, kneeling down on my rug. "I really didn't catch the whole part...but it's another plan for He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named."

We all stayed silent in surprise. She wasn't supposed to know anything about him. Or about any of the plans. Once we had gotten home after our first year, my mother and father had told me that they were very proud of what I had done for The Dark Lord. That I was on my way to make the family name known. I just nodded and smiled, though I wasn't a hundred percent sure what they were referring to. Afterwords, I was told that I was only to listen to Snape and Archidia; only mix into the plans unless they told me to; to keep my nose clean and stay sly.

And to make sure all of this was kept secret from anyone that wasn't the Malfoy's, Serpance's, Goyle's or Crabbe's.

So naturally, if I was told all of this in such a broad and undetailed manner, I would've expected for Aletta not to know anything at all. Then again, she is a very bright girl and only so much of the activity that goes on will go unnoticed by her in our Manor.

"If you want to know more, they're still talking about it. You can hide in corridor next to the lounge. That's where they're talking." Aletta continued, petting Bartholomew. "And I won't say anything. I promise."

"Thank you Alett. You can go play now." I told her, smiling.

"Sure thing!"

She skipped out, closing the door behind her and leaving us wondering.

"Should we?" Draco asked, standing up, looking excited.

"I totally want to know." Said Lydia, getting off me and looking at the door.

"Us too!" Said Crabbe and Goyle in unison.

"Then it's settled." I said smirking, going to the door and opening it. "Follow me."

Making sure no one was in the halls, I sprinted to the corridor that led to the lounge with the rest of them at my heels. As we got there, I saw that there was only a small area for us to listen through the wall. Two large pedestals were restricting our space and if we tried to move them, we would risk making too much noise and getting caught.

"What're we going to do?" Crabbe whispered.

"Vanice can like sit on someone's lap. She's like the smallest one." Lydia said, kneeling near the wall.

"Am not." I huffed, crossing my arms.

"You are." Draco said smiling, sitting down behind Lydia.

"Sit on Draco's lap." Goyle suggested. "Crabbe and I have to stand for us to hear."

I could feel the heat rise in my cheeks and I didn't dare glance at Draco. Instead, I sucked in some air and shrugged, not looking back.

"Well alright. Just don't complain that I'm heavy Draco."

And with that I quickly sat down on his crossed legs, trying to stay still and listen to the voices behind the wall. Underneath me, I felt him become rigid, slowly relax, the lean against the wall, keeping his hands away from me.

"...The Diary was kept in a safe place I assure you all..." Lucius' voice said.

The sounds were muffled and quiet.

"... -ruxe. Once it's taken a life, it will become more than just a memory."

"But who will be the person to be sacrificed?" My father's voice asked.

"Someone who is gullible enough."

"The plan is settled. Leave the Diary in here, we cannot risk anything happening to it." Lydia's mother advised.

There were footsteps, indicating that they were leaving the lounge, and we pressed against the pedestals and each other, praying that they wouldn't be able to see us. This was not the way I wanted to die, and I surely would if my parents found out I was spying on them.

"The children are with Vanice." My mother told the parents, leading them all downstairs.

Once they were at the staircase, which was around the corner of the corridor, Lydia stood up and began tip-toeing to the lounge.

"What are you doing?" I hissed.

"I want to see that Diary. Duh." She said, then looked back and smirked. "You two seem cozy."

Confused, I looked down and the heat in my face rose. Unknown to me, Draco had wrapped his arms around my waist and pulled me closer to him, most likely when our parents had walked out to make sure we weren't seen. He immediately dropped his arms and shoved me off, making me fall onto the hardwood floor.

"Ow!" I said, trying to keep my voice down. The embarrassment I felt was slowly descending and being filled up with anger. "What was that for?"

"Nothing." Draco muttered behind me, standing up and walking to Lydia. He hissed something angrily to her and walked into the lounge, leaving her with a surprised expression on her face.

Crabbe and Goyle exchanged looks quickly, then walked over to help me up.

"Thank you." I mumbled, crossing my arms.

I followed them all in, still confused and irritated. Caught off guard due to the lights all off, I bumped into Lydia and fell back onto a couch, groaning in annoyance.

"What's wrong?" I asked, staying on the couch.

"Like, where's the lights?"

Rolling my eyes, I sighed and snapped my fingers. The lounge was illuminated by a small handful of candles that were place around the wall. Now that there was light, you could see that in the middle of the room was a wooden table. And on top of the was an old small book with a black shabby cover.

"Want to bet that's the Diary?" Draco said, looking at it from a distance.

"You're all acting like it's totally going to bite you." Lydia giggled, walking towards the table to pick it up and examine it. "It's fifty years old!"

"How do you know?" Asked Crabbe.

"It's says so, dummy. On the cover. See? It's like fading." She said pointing it out.

"It doesn't seem so special." Commented Goyle.

"You never know." Draco spoke up. "Father says that some of the books the Ministry's confiscated are dangerous but they seem perfectly fine."

"Well then we'll like never know..." Lydia pouted, turning the Diary around in her hands.

Getting impatient, I snatched it from her hands and opened it, looking for any writing. All there was in the entire book was a name, T.M. Riddle, written in smudged ink on the first page.

"Just a name." I told them, raising an eyebrow.

"That can't be just it." Draco said, putting his arms on his hips.

Ignoring him, I gave it back to Lydia.

"See for yourself."

After it was passed around and proven to be empty, I noticed a quill on the table with a bottle of ink. It seemed freshly used.

"But..." I mumbled, confused.

Picking up the quill, I took the Diary from Goyle and sat down on my knees, prepared to write when Lydia tugged at my elbow.

"What are you doing?! If they see that we wrote anything we're so dead!" She exclaimed, her eyes as big as saucers.

"But it was freshly used, and where else is there paper?" I told her, keeping the quill above the paper.

By sheer luck, I saw in slow motion the drop of ink that was close to dripping fall onto the page of the Diary, and everyone took in an deep breath of fear. It made a small blot and just as I was about to close the cover, I saw the ink shine on the page for a second or so, and then as though it was being sucked into the paper, vanished.

"Woah!" Crabbe whispered, and I looked back to see all of them with a shocked expression.

"It just disappeared!" Draco said, kneeling besides Lydia.

"Boys, go keep guard." Ordered Lydia.

They nodded, hesitating at first but then quickly went to wait by the door.

"I wonder..." I said, wanting to test it.

Eagerly, I picked up the quill and wrote, "Vanice Crypton, Lydia Serpance and Draco Malfoy would like to know why this Diary is so important."

Oozing back out of the page were words with a different handwriting.

"_Your surnames are very familiar. How did you come by my diary?"_

These words, faded away as well, and we all were mesmerized as I began to have a conversation with a book.

"Our parents." I wrote back, nearly tipping over the ink bottle.

It answered back almost immediately.

"_Your parents, as in Lucius Malfoy, Xavier_ _Crypton and Reverend Serpance?_"

"Yes, them precisely." I answered, my hand beginning to shake with anxiety.

_"They are very close friends of mine. They've told me much about you all...I faintly remember you, Vanice."_

"Who exactly are you?" I wrote quickly, confused.

"_Watch._" The writing said, and in larger font, the name **TOM MARVOLO RIDDLE** was spelled out, then in the next few seconds was rearranged.

We were all silent with shock and excitement.

The letters had spelled out:

**I AM LORD VOLDEMORT**

As those words began to fade, new ones began to surface.

"_I am just a memory that was kept conserved, but I met you in my future. I cannot and will not explain to you much through this Diary, but as told to me by Archidia and Snape...though young, you are all my loyal followers."_

We nodded, but soon felt stupid, knowing the book couldn't see.

"We are," I paused to think of a respectful title, "my Lord."

"_Perfect. I take your word, for you helped me in my attempt to be revived...as your parents are aiding me as well."_

I glanced at Lydia, who was holding her hair in awe. She looked up and pushed my arm, nodding for me to continue.

"Ask like what the plan is!" She hissed.

Becoming nervous, I dipped the quill in ink and began to write.

"What is the next plan?"

"_You need not know yet. I'm sure faithful Snape will advise you. But your assistance may be required..."_

"We will do whatever we can." I scrawled, hoping for an answer.

"_I will only tell you once, and you will keep it among yourselves. You may not tell your parents, nor Snape and his wife:_

_The Chamber of Secrets must be opened by a foolishly naïve victim. Someone worthless of loosing. Your parents are steps ahead of you all, and your assistance will only be needed to assure of the plot's smooth transition._

_You will learn in soon time what this all means.*"_

As I was about to answer back, the cover blew shut, as if an invisible wind was blowing in the lounge that we had forgotten we were in.

"I take it as no more questions." Draco mumbled, breaking the silence.

My hands still shaking, I placed the book and quill where they were and stood up, looking at them all.

"What's the Chamber of Secrets?" Lydia asked, walking slowly with me to the door.

"I have no idea..." I said, my heart pounding.

**~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~**

**DID YOU ALL LIKE?! I am sooo excited! So many things will happen in this book...and...DRANICE! What? Who said that?**

**ATTENTION! I am holding another contest for the CoverArt for this book! If you are interested, please PM me as soon as possible! I will answer faster than you can say Quidditch with the rules and prizes.**

**Thanks for reading, R&R, F&F and Never Tickle A Sleeping Dragon!**


	2. The Fight in Flourish and Botts

The following week, Draco had sent all of us an owl, and I had ignored it completely.

"Dear, you have a letter." Mother had said when it arrived.

"Hogwarts?" I asked, looking up from my desk.

"Draco."

"I'd rather not read it." I mumbled, continuing to read Dragons and Goblins.

"Vanice!"

"Oh alright." I sighed, not wanting a lecture on politeness. I stood up and took it from her, and as soon as she left my room, I had tossed it into my fireplace.

So when my father received an personal letter on behalf of my missing response to the first one...I wasn't very surprised.

"Vanice, where is the letter?" Father asked, walking into my room the present day.

"The Hogwarts one is on my desk." I told him, pointing to letter from my bed.

"The one from Lucius." He said, hinting he was not in the mood to play around.

"Mother said that was from Draco." I said, sitting up.

"It was an invitation from the both of them. To be of company to Diagon Alley." My father told me, a bit angry. "The impoliteness of not responding, much less not even _glancing_ at their letter is an insult to the Crypton name."

Wincing, I looked down at my lap.

"I'm sorry."

"Now," Father said, standing at my doorway. "Whether you wanted to or not, it is no longer your freedom of choice to pick. You will go to show that we are not ignorant people. Understood?"

"Yes Father."

By that afternoon I had made sure I was not anymore trouble. An hour before I had to leave, I made sure I was ready: my hair and makeup made; robes clean and fresh; wand and extra Galleons ready.

"So glad you could join us, Vanice." Said Lucius when I arrived at their Manor.

"Thank you for inviting me." I answered, bowing my head slightly. "I'm sure my father discussed the incident with the previous letter?"

"He did. All is fine. We will be leaving immediately." He snapped his fingers and Dobby appeared, looking nervous and in pain.

"Y-yes M-Mast-"

"Go get Draco and the rest of the children." He hissed, glaring at it.

"Y-yes Mast-ter."

We left quickly once everyone had entered, and when we arrived at Diagon Alley, it was packed with wizards and witches, all buying for different purposes. You could mostly make out Hogwarts students running in and out of shops, waving lists around and playing with their wands.

"Alright, who brought their list?" I asked once we were walking along the streets.

"I did." Draco said, pulling his out.

"So did I." Crabbe and Goyle said.

"Duh. I did too." Said Lydia.

"Well that's good. I brought mine." I said, taking everyones lists and beginning the read. "Let's see...it says we need _The Standard Book of Spells Grade 2, Break with a Banshee, Gadding with Ghouls, Holidays with Hags, Travels with Tr _- **OW**!"

Falling backwards, I used the hand that was holding onto the lists and rubbed my forehead, pouting.

Lydia came over to help me up, laughing a bit and smiling.

"You like, walked into that sign." She said, pointing to a large wooden sign that was swinging from our meet.

"Follow me. I need to do a few errands before we go buying you all new supplies." Mr. Malfoy said, oblivious to my incident.

We kept right behind him, and stayed even closer when we turned the corner into Knockturn Alley. My father at times walked through here, and I've accompanied him when I would be allowed.

There was an aura that you could never place and it sent chills up my spine. In the distance we saw what looked like the largest shop, but opposite was a window display of shrunken heads and, two doors down, a large cage was alive with gigantic black spiders. Two shabby-looking wizards were watching us from the shadow of a doorway, muttering to each other.

An old wooden street sign hanging over a shop selling poisonous candles was hiding an aged witch. She was holding a tray of what looked horribly like whole human fingernails. She leered at us, showing mossy teeth.

We walked into a a shop called Borgin and Burkes after Lucius, and I was intrigued by all the rare merchandise. A glass case nearby held a withered hand on a cushion, a bloodstained pack of cards, and a staring glass eye. Evil-looking masks stared down from the walls, an assortment of human bones lay upon the counter, and rusty, spiked instruments hung from the ceiling.

"Wicked..." Draco whispered.

Mr. Malfoy crossed the shop, looking lazily at the items on display, and rang a bell on the counter before turning to us and saying, "Touch nothing."

We all glared at Goyle, who had reached for the glass eye.

"Ah, Mr. Borgin."

A stooping man had appeared behind the counter, smoothing his greasy hair back from his face.

"Mr. Malfoy, what a pleasure to see you again," said Mr. Borgin in a voice as oily as his hair. "Delighted - and young Master Malfoy, with friends - charmed. How may I be of assistance? I must show you, just in today, and very reasonably priced -"

"I'm not buying today, Mr. Borgin, but selling," said Mr. Malfoy.

"Selling?"

Not wanting to listen, we all walked around, looking at the interesting stock.

"Look at that." Goyle said, pointing at a withered hand on its cushion.

"It looks dead." I noted, walking over to it.

"And totally gross." Lydia said.

"I wouldn't touch it, if I were you." Warned Draco.

Holding back a smile, I started looking at the objects for sale. I paused to examine a long coil of hangman's rope and read, smirking, the card propped on a magnificent necklace of opals, Caution: Do Not Touch. Cursed - Has Claimed the Lives of Nineteen Muggle Owners to Date.

"Relax your hand!"

"I can't it's stuck!"

Spinning my head to my right, I saw Goyle trying to free himself from the grasp of the withered hand with Crabbe panicking beside him.

"I told you not to touch it!" Draco hissed, pulling Goyle.

I laughed with Lydia, covering our mouths with our hands and keeping out of Mr. Malfoy's hearing distance.

"You're so dumb." Lydia giggled, walking back to Lucius.

"Done," said Mr. Malfoy at the counter. "Come, children - Good day to you, Mr. Borgin. I'll expect you at the manor tomorrow to pick up the goods."

Keeping close to the group, we walked out into the small shops that were specialized for Dark Arts. As we started heading back to Diagon Alley for our supplies, another old witch stopped to show us several mirrors. I tried to ignore her and continue walking, but Lydia stayed behind, listening to her speak.

"Vanice! They're called Forever Mirrors!" Lydia exclaimed, pulling me back.

"I wouldn't trust that..." I whispered, tugging at her arm.

"I can just look at myself when I want to...like pictures but it's my reflection!" She said, reaching to grab one.

Widening my eyes, I yanked her away, picking up the pace to catch up to Crabbe.

"Nope. You've gone bonkers. I bet it takes away your soul or something."

Draco looked back at us, confused. A second later he shook his head, most likely deciding it was better not to ask.

"Come on, my father said we could go off in our own, and to meet at Flourish and Botts later on." He said.

Leading us to a stand near the middle of Diagon Alley, he bought us five large vanilla-and-caramel ice cream cones.

"Thank you." I said, then took a large bite of the ice-cream.

Moments later I regretted that decision greatly as a bad brain-freeze started, and I started stamping my foot in pain, gritting my teeth.

Lydia and Goyle began laughing besides me, nearly tipping their sweets over.

"Sh-shut up!" I hissed, holding my head and whining.

Suddenly a hand wrapped itself around mine and took away my cone gently. A small hard candy was being placed into my mouth, and the pain began to subside as soon as I had began to suck on it.

"Ice-Cream Subsider." Draco's voice said. "You shouldn't bite into your desserts like that."

Blushing slightly, I nodded and reached out to take my cone back.

"Right, sorry."

"Let's go shopping!" Lydia giggled, wiping her face with a napkin.

Agreeing, we all began walking together, examining the fascinating shop windows. Draco walked into Quality Quidditch Supplies, and we stayed for awhile, seeing the new brooms and Quidditch team merchandise.

"A Nimbus Two Thousand and One!" I sighed, staring at it.

Through the window behind the broom was a small pink sign, and as my eyes adjusted, I grinned as I saw it was Sugarplum's Sweets Shop. I dragged everyone off to buy sweets and candy.

Next door was Gambol and Japes Wizarding Joke Shop, and I stopped slightly. I could've sworn I saw that unmistakable red hair...

"Let's _go_, Vanice." Lydia said suddenly, grabbing my sleeve.

An hour later of exploring and shopping, we headed for Flourish and Blotts.

"This is absurd!" I groaned, seeing that we were by no means the only ones making our way to the bookshop.

As we approached it, we saw to our dismay a large crowd jostling outside the doors, trying to get in. The reason for this was proclaimed

by a large banner stretched across the upper windows:

**GILDEROY LOCKHART will be signing copies of his autobiography MAGICAL ME today 12:30 P.m. to 4:30 P.m.**

"Isn't he like the one that all of our books are from?" Lydia asked, raising an eyebrow in excitement. "He's is so cute!"

The crowd seemed to be made up mostly of witches around our mothers age. A harrassed-looking wizard stood at the door, saying, "Calmly, please, ladies ... Don't push, there ... mind the books, now..."

We squeezed inside, making our way to a staircase that led above the chaos. A long line wound right to the back of the shop, where Gilderoy Lockhart was signing his books. I grabbed a copy of The Standard Book of Spells, Grade 2 for each of us, then handed them out, leaning against the railing before us.

"Look who it is." Draco suddenly sneered beside me.

From the view we had, all we could really see was the entrance and the line that lead up to the table that was being used by Gilderoy Lockhart. Yet, it was unmistakable that Potter, Granger and Weasley were there, waiting near the front of the line.

"What a surprise to see them in a shop." I smirked, rolling my eyes.

Minutes later, Lockhart came slowly into view, taking his seat at the table surrounded by large pictures of his own face, all winking and flashing dazzlingly white teeth at the crowd. The real Lockhart was wearing robes of forget-me-not blue that exactly matched his eyes; his pointed wizard's hat was set at a jaunty angle on his wavy hair.

"He is so attractive." Lydia sighed, looking down and shoving her books at Goyle.

"He really isn't that bad..." I agreed, giving my books to Draco.

I heard the boys begin to mutter, but my attention was on Lockhart, who had then leapt to his feet and positively shouted, "It can't be Harry Potter?"

The crowd parted, whispering excitedly; Lockhart dived forward, seized Scarhead's arm, and pulled him to the front. The crowd burst into applause.

Besides me, Draco seemed even more irritated that he suddenly already was.

"Nice big smile, Harry," I heard Lockhart say through his own gleaming teeth. "Together, you and I are worth the front page."

"Rubbish." Crabbe muttered.

Lockhart threw an arm around Potter's shoulders and clamped him tightly to his side.

"Ladies and gentlemen," he said loudly, waving for quiet. "What an extraordinary moment this is! The perfect moment for me to make a little announcement I've been sitting on for some time!

"When young Harry here stepped into Flourish and Blotts today, he only wanted to buy my autobiography -which I shall be happy to present him now, free of charge-"

The crowd applauded again, and we scoffed loudly.

"He had no idea," Lockhart continued, "that he would shortly be getting much, much more than my book, Magical Me. He and his schoolmates will, in fact, be getting the real magical me. Yes, ladies and gentlemen, I have great pleasure and pride in announcing that this September, I will be taking up the post of Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry!"

"Might as well give it to Weasley. He can't afford them anyways." Lydia snapped, crossing her arms.

"We should let them know." Draco hissed, walking down the stairs.

I walked behind him and saw Potter walking right up to us, not even noticing himself.

"Bet you loved that, didn't you, Potter?" said Draco with a sneer.

"Famous Harry Potter," I continued. "Can't even go into a bookshop without making the front page."

"Leave him alone, he didn't want all that!" said the tiny red haired girl besides him. She glared at us.

"Potter, you've like got yourself a girlfriend!" drawled Lydia.

"Oh, it's you," said a voice, and we looked up to see Weasley. "Bet you're surprised to see Harry here, eh?"

"Not as surprised as I am to see you in a shop, Weasley," retorted Draco. "I suppose your parents will go hungry for a month to pay for all those."

He went red, then dropped his books into the cauldron and started toward Draco but Potter and Granger grabbed the back of his jacket.

"Ron!" said another voice, which belonged to Mr. Wesley himself, struggling over with the Weasley Twins. "What are you doing? It's too crowded in here, let's go outside."

And all too familiar voice spoke behind us, and the smirk we had grew even wider.

"Well, well, well - Arthur Weasley."

It was Mr. Malfoy. He stood with his hand on Draco's shoulder, glaring in just the same way.

"Lucius," said Mr. Weasley, nodding coldly.

"Busy time at the Ministry, I hear," said Lucius. "All those raids ... I hope they're paying you overtime?"

He reached into the little girl's cauldron that looked like the rest of the Weasley's and extracted, from amid the glossy Lockhart books, a very old, very battered copy of A Beginner's Guide to Transfiguration.

"Obviously not," Mr. Malfoy said. "Dear me, what's the use of being a disgrace to the name of wizard if they don't even pay you well for it?"

We all glared at them, sneering and smirking.

Mr. Weasley flushed darker than his children.

"We have a very different idea of what disgraces the name of wizard, Malfoy," he said.

"Clearly," said Lucius, his pale eyes straying to Muggle parents, who were watching apprehensively. "The company you keep, Weasley... and I thought your family could sink no lower - "

There was a thud of metal as a cauldron went flying; Mr. Weasley had thrown himself at Mr. Malfoy, knocking him backward into a bookshelf.

"Uncultured pig!" Lydia and I yelled at Mr. Weasley as the boys cheered Lucius on.

Dozens of heavy spellbooks came thundering down on all our heads; the crowd stampeded backward, knocking more shelves over.

"Gentlemen, please - please!" cried the assistant.

In an instant, it all stopped, just as quickly as it started. Mr. Weasley had a cut lip and Mr. Malfoy had been hit in the eye by an Encyclopedia of Toadstools. He was still holding the old Transfiguration book. He thrust it at the girl, his eyes glittering with malice.

"Here, girl - take your book - it's the best your father can give you -" Pulling himself upright, he beckoned to us and swept from the shop.

"My mother is going to be enraged." Draco muttered, staying behind his father.

**~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•**

**I'm glad you all liked that second chapter, and I love the reviews I've gotten! Thank you also for all the follows and favorites!**

**Please, PM me with ideas or anything you'd like me to add, or just PM me!(: also, please keep in mind I am still looking for someone to draw the cover!**

**•Q.O.C...**

**-Would you swoon over Lockhart?**

**Thank you for reading! Remember, Review, Follow, PM me and Never Tickle A Sleeping Dragon!**


	3. Gummy-Sounds?

"Like, move out of my way! Stupid First Years!"

"That's _our_ cabin. So I suggest getting out."

The small First Years that had settled themselves in looked at each other in panic, then filed out, flinching as they saw Crabbe and Goyle.

Lydia made her way to her usual spot and threw her small bag on the ground, fixing her hair and opening the small table that was folded into the train wall. Crabbe slid the cabin door shut as soon as we were all inside, then emptied out his pockets onto the table, creating a large pile of sweets and candies. Sitting down besides Draco, I yawned and began to close my eyes, planning to take a short nap on the way back to Hogwarts.

"Vanice, don't fall asleep." Draco said, shaking my shoulder.

I groaned angrily, still mad at him for shoving me off his lap at my Manor.

"Listen, I want to tell you all what I had said was important." He said, continuing to shake me.

"Oh right...I like totally forgot about that." Lydia giggled.

"What is it." I mumbled, leaning on the arm that was shaking me.

"I'm our new Seeker."

I sat up, looking at him with disbelief.

"You're joking." Said Lydia.

"I am not." Draco scoffed, clearly liking the attention. "Father bought the whole team new brooms in order to... _push_ their decision for their new Seeker."

The train chugged forward and we closed the blinds, wanting to hear what Draco had to say without any distractions.

"...and then Marcus Flint sent an owl, letting us know I had gotten the spot."

"Well, congratulations." I said, rolling eyes, still somewhat holding my grudge.

Draco glanced at me, and his grin flickered before diminishing into a small smile.

"Uh, thanks."

Changing the subject, Goyle opened a bag of Licorice Wands and spoke up.

"They aren't on the train."

"They who?"

"Potter and Weasley. Granger is all alone, but they aren't even on board."

I closed my eyes, ready to take a nap and leaned on Draco's chest, not wanting to hear a rant about Potter.

.

**...**

.

Hours later, I felt soft movement and shuffling, and I groaned, wanting to stay asleep longer. I had forgotten I was on the Hogwarts Express and was having a pleasant dream of sweets and Quidditch.

"Uh, Vanice...? Vanice wake up. We're here."

It sounded like Draco, and he was holding onto my arm.

"Here where...?" I mumbled, shuffling and staying put.

"Hogwarts."

I struggled slightly to open my eyes, still very drowsy. Sitting up, I rubbed my eyes and scratched my head, moving my hair around.

"Vanice, no! You're messing up your hair!" Lydia's voice exclaimed.

I felt hands begin to run themselves down my hair, and I knew it was Lydia attempting to fix it.

"Alright, alright." I yawned, finally widening my eyes and standing up.

Everything was packed up, from the sweets to our small bags, and we seemed to be the last few people still on the train. There was only a number of fourth and fifth years lagging behind, and through the window you could see the group of students heading to the boats.

"Why didn't you guys wake me up earlier?" I asked, getting off the train and picking up my pace to reach the rest of the students.

"Well you were totally knocked out!" Lydia said, grabbing an empty boat.

We rushed into the Great Hall, and the sight yet again astounded us. Innumerable candles were hovering in midair over the four long, crowded tables, making the golden plates and goblets sparkle. Overhead, the bewitched ceiling sparkled with stars.

Trying to make our way to our seats without seeming late, we saw that the Sorting Ceremony was about to begin, and the first girl called up was the stupid red haired Weasley.

"Gryffindor!" The hat called, and we smirked happily.

A very tiny, mousy-haired boy had been called forward to place the hat on his head.

"Snape's missing." Draco said suddenly, and we looked at the Staff Table, seeing an empty spot.

Gilderoy Lockhart was several seats down, dressed in robes of aquamarine. McGongall was there, as was Flitwick, Professor Sprout and even Archidia.

I waved at her and she smiled, raising her goblet towards me in a Welcome Back.

The feast continued after the Sorting was finished and we stuffed ourselves full with turkey, chicken, ribs, bread, carrots and peas; mashed potatoes, pies, rice, beans, hot dogs and burgers.

"The food is always so good." Crabbe said, reaching over to grab another chicken leg.

"So is the dessert." I giggled, sipping from my goblet.

As Dumbledore gave his final words before bed, I saw Archidia stand up to leave early, going out the back door of the Great Hall.

Out of the corner of my eye I also saw Felix Rower begin to walk up to me, smiling and running a hand through his seemingly perfect hair.

"Vanice, how are you?" He asked, giving me his hand to help me stand.

Everyone was beginning to leave to their Common Room's and Dormitories, and Lydia was giving me a glare, more so directed towards Felix since he was not really liked in my... circle of friends.

"Fine, thank you Felix." I said, giving him a weak smile.

"That's great." He said, then pointed to the end of the table. "Archidia is looking for you and Lydia. She sent me to tell you."

"For real?" Lydia asked skeptical.

"Honest." Felix said, and Archidia gave us an impatient look.

"Alright, thanks Felix." I said, walking over to her.

"No problem." Called Felix as I kept walking. "Maybe we should talk more!"

"As if." Lydia huffed, then ran to give Archidia a hug.

"Hello Lydia." Archidia laughed.

"Hello." I smiled, giving her a hug as well.

"As a welcome back, I have a lovely surprise for you two." She said, hugging us back then leading us to the dungeons.

"What is it?" Lydia asked, twirling her hair in her finger, which had gotten longer and lighter, yet it felt just as silky, despite the sudden waves that had appeared.

We had all changed slightly over the summer. Lydia and I hadn't grown much, but my hair got slightly longer, if even possible, darker, and we both had begun to grow the slightest of curves near our chests and waists. Draco and the boys had only gotten taller, from what we could tell.

"You'll see...now stay silent." She ordered, opening a small closet door. "Stay in there and listen."

Raising an eyebrow, we both stepped inside and saw it was dark and cramped, filled with jars of Potions ingredients. There was another door that was in front of us, and Archida closed the one behind us. Under the door was a small opening on the bottom that allowed light to creep in, and I immediately recognized we were in a supply closet in Snape's office. It was cold as usual and a sudden slam of a door made us jump. Judging by the footsteps, there was three people, and by the sudden voice that began to speak, it was Snape, talking to the usual two dunderheads.

"So," he said softly, "the train isn't good enough for the famous Harry Potter and his faithful sidekick Weasley. Wanted to arrive with a bang, did we, boys?"

Lydia elbowed me and I covered my mouth to hide my scoff. Archidia was giving us the gift of hearing Potter and Weasley get yelled at. This was too good to be true.

"No, sir, it was the barrier at King's Cross, it -"

"Silence!" said Snape coldly. "What have you done with the car?"

"Car?" Lydia and I whispered confused.

A moment later, we understood, as it sounded like someone had unrolled a parchment of paper.

"You were seen," Snape hissed, "**FORD ANGLIA MYSTIFIES MUGGLES."**

He began to read aloud:

"_Two Muggles in London, convinced they saw an old car flying over the Post Office tower... at noon in Norfolk, Mrs. Hetty Bayliss, while hanging out her washing... Mr. Angus Fleet, of Peebles, reported to police... Six or seven Muggles in all."_

Lydia held the bridge of her nose with her thumb and forefinger, and I agreed.

How could they be so stupid and be seen?

"I believe your father works in the Misuse of Muggle Artifacts Office?" Professor Snape said. "Dear, dear... his own son... "

Lydia and I exchanged smirks.

"I noticed, in my search of the park, that considerable damage seems to have been done to a very valuable Whomping Willow," Snape went on.

"That tree did more damage to us than we -" Weasley blurted out.

"Silence!" snapped Snape again. "Most unfortunately, you are not in my House and the decision to expel you does not rest with me. I shall go and fetch the people who do have that happy power. You will wait here."

I felt Lydia's fingers wrap themselves around mine, and she had her fingers crossed. I held back a laugh and imagined how pale-faced they must look at the moment.

Ten minutes later, Snape returned, and we were sure enough it was Professor McGonagall who accompanied him back.

"Sit," Her voice said, "Explain."

Weasley launched into their story, starting with the barrier at the station refusing to let them through.

We rolled our eyes.

"-so we had no choice, Professor, we couldn't get on the train."

"Why didn't you send us a letter by owl? I believe you have an owl?" Professor McGonagall said coldly to them.

For once I agreed with her.

"I - I didn't think -"

"That," said Professor McGonagall, "is obvious."

There was a knock on the office door and when it was opened, the room feel silent.

After a while, a voice that Lydia and I recognized said, "Please explain why you did this."

It was Dumbledore, and we nearly jumped with joy. He sounded so disappointed in his favorite student.

"We'll go and get our stuff," said Weasley in a hopeless sort of voice.

We leaned in closer to the door in hope.

"What are you talking about, Weasley?" barked Professor McGonagall.

"Well, you're expelling us, aren't you?" said Weasley.

"Not today, Mr. Weasley," said McGonagall.

Lydia pinched my arm in anger and I nearly yelped, then whacked her in annoyance.

"But I must impress upon both of you the seriousness of what you have done. I will be writing to both your families tonight. I must also warn you that if you do anything like this again, I will have no choice but to expel you."

Snape cleared his throat and said, "Professor Dumbledore, these boys have flouted the Decree for the Restriction of Underage Wizardry, caused serious damage to an old and valuable tree - surely acts of this nature -"

"It will be for Professor McGonagall to decide on these boys' punishments, Severus," said Dumbledore calmly. "They are in her House and are therefore her responsibility."

"Come, Severus, there is a delicious-looking custard tart that I want to sample-"

And with that, Snape reluctantly swept from his office with Dumbledore, and from the sound of it, it seemed it was just them two and Professor McGonagall.

"You will both get a detention." She said coldly.

Glancing around, I saw a small hole in the wall besides the door, and grinned, looking through it.

Professor McGonagall raised her wand and pointed it at Snape's desk. A large plate of sandwiches, two silver goblets, and a jug of iced pumpkin juice appeared with a pop.

"You will eat in here and then go straight up to your dormitory," she said. "I have to leave now as well."

When the door had closed behind her, Weasley let out a long, low whistle.

"I thought we'd had it," he said, grabbing a sandwich.

"So did I," said Potter, taking one, too.

"Can you believe our luck, though?" said Weasley thickly through a mouthful of chicken and ham. "Fred and George must've flown that car five or six times and no Muggle ever saw them."

"Too lucky." Lydia hissed under her breath.

When they had eaten as many sandwiches as they could (the plate kept refilling itself) they rose and left the office.

As soon as they were minutes away, I unlocked the door and walked into the office, looking around and sighing.

The shadowy walls were lined with shelves of large glass jars, in which floated all manner of curious things. I went over and picked up a sandwich, biting into it.

"She didn't even take points!" Lydia exclaimed, taking a sandwich as well.

"Just a detention, not even a weeks worth." I muttered, taking a seat.

There was a knock at the office door and Lydia and I jumped, then Archidia walked in, smiling.

"Well?" She asked, then raised an eyebrow at the platter of food.

"They like flew in on a _car!_" Lydia told her angrily.

"Oh, but they were so scared when Snape caught them." I laughed.

"I'm glad you two enjoyed the show." Archida said, then placed her hands on our shoulders. "You should be heading back to the Common Room. The password is Retortia."

The castle was quiet. I held the plate of sandwiches up and Lydia carried a bag of sweets, making our way to the dungeons. We walked past muttering portraits and creaking suits of armor, and when we reached the dark brick wall that led to our Common Room, Mrs. Norris began meowing from around the corner.

"Retortia!" I hissed, not wanting to get caught.

We quickly scurried inside, hearing her meows get louder and closer. Seeing the Common Room basically empty, we began heading to our rooms when Lydia pulled my sleeve and nodded to the boys dormitories.

"Let's go tell Draco. I'm totally sure they're still up." She suggested. "And would like, love to hear this."

I shrugged, agreeing with her idea and let Lydia lead the way to their bedroom, trying to make as little noise as possible.

"Crabbe! Goyle!" I hissed as we reached the door. "Draco! Open up!"

There was a sudden shuffle from the other side of the door and it slowly creaked open, with Crabbe looking at us with a confused expression.

"What are you guys doing?" He asked.

"We have food and something to tell you all." I said, raising up the plate of sandwiches.

"Let them in, Crabbe." Draco's voice said.

Nodding, he opened the door and let us through, stealing a sandwich as I passed by. Crabbe closed the door behind us and I noticed that the boys dormitories seemed fairly the same as the girls. Draco's bed was on the far right, then there was an empty one, and after that was Crabbe's and Goyle's. I placed the platter on the trunk in front of Goyle's bed an saw Draco laying down on his, tossing a ball around.

"You all seem to be having a blast." I giggled, going over and pulling Draco upright.

"Like, guess who Archidia let us eavesdrop on?" Lydia asked, sitting down on the unoccupied bed and emptying the sack of sweets.

"Who?" Asked Draco.

"Potter and Weasley."

Lydia and I began to excitedly tell them what had happened, starting with Felix telling us to meet Archidia, until the end where she gave us the bag of free sweets and platter of extra food to bring down to the Common Room.

"I would pay good money to see them get yelled at like that again." Draco smirked, completely satisfied with the story.

I giggled and examined at the pile of candy near Lydia. There was several chocolates, Bertie Botts Bean's and Droobles. As I was about to pick up a Chocoball, I saw a new blue box of candies that I had not seen before. I picked up up and read its name aloud, "_Gummy-Sounds._"

"Gummy what?" Lydia asked, dropping her Cotton Quill.

"I have no idea," I said, turning the box around and reading the label. "Eat a gummy and release a jungle of sounds. Colors and noises vary."

"Lemme see." said Goyle, taking a blue one.

We stared at him intently as he chewed it, and abruptly began to bellow like a whale. Lydia laughed and Goyle shut his mouth, smiling. He opened it again, and no whale sound came out.

"It's a one time thing I suppose." Draco said, the popped a green one into his mouth.

As soon as he had swallowed it, he began to meow, in a much more likable tone than Mrs. Norris.

"That's adorable!" I giggled.

Smiling, Lydia handed me a purple one, and I in return gave her a yellow one.

My mouth began to feel numb as soon as I had swallowed, and as I opened my mouth, I flinched. The sound I had let out was a giant crack of thunder. Draco began to laugh and Lydia let out a loud crow of a rooster.

"That is so cool!" I chuckled.

"My turn." Crabbe said.

He began to chew on a green one, closing an eye in thought.

"Open up." Goyle told him, and Crabbe let out the sound of a siren, making Lydia and I begin to laugh again.

This was definitely a great way to start off the year.

**~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•**

**They're back in school! **

**Thank you so much for all the favorites and follows, and thank you so much for the kind reviews! I love them and I always try to respond by thank you in PM if you do review! There was one particular reviewer that I could not PM and that was ****_Electrik Emeralds_****. I loved your long and detailed review, LOVED IT. Thank you!**

**•Q.O.C...**

**-What would you have done if the gate closed on you to Platform 9 3/4? **

**Thanks for reading, please review, favorite and follow, check out the first book to this sequel and Never Tickle A Sleeping Dragon!**


	4. Pesky-Pixies-Mandrake-Howler-Anomies!

The next day, I must admit, was even better than the day before. Things started to go great from breakfast in the Great Hall. The four long house tables were laden with tureens of porridge, plates of kippers, mountains of toast, and dishes of eggs and bacon, beneath the enchanted ceiling which was a plain blue sky.

Lydia and I sat down at the Slytherin table next to Draco, who seemed to be avoiding Pansy Ramsey's gaze.

"Mail's due any minute, Mother is going to send more fudge again." Draco told me.

I smiled at him and began to eat, but sure enough, there was a rushing sound overhead and a hundred or so owls streamed in, circling the hall and dropping letters and packages into the chattering crowd. At the Gryffindor table was a sudden explosion of noise as an owl crashed into Granger's food.

"Erol!" We heard Weasley cry, pulling the bedraggled owl out by the feet.

From our side, we could see a damp red envelope in his beak.

"Oh my Merlin..." Lydia giggled, pointing at the red envelope.

Immediately, Draco and I began to snicker and laugh. They had gotten a Howler. We expected it to explode any second now, and Theo Nott elbowed Blaise Zabini who began to alert everyone else.

We saw Weasley reach to open it and we quickly covered our ears.

A roar of sound filled the huge hall, shaking dust from the ceiling.

**_"STEALING THE CAR, I WOULDN'T HAVE BEEN SURPRISED IF THEY'D EXPELLED YOU, YOU WAIT TILL I GET HOLD OF YOU, I DON'T SUPPOSE YOU STOPPED TO THINK WHAT YOUR FATHER AND I WENT THROUGH WHEN WE SAW IT WAS GONE -"_**

Mrs. Weasley's yells, we guessed, made the plates and spoons rattle on the table, and echoed deafeningly off the stone walls. People throughout the hall were swiveling around to see who had received the Howler, and Weasley sank so low in his chair that only his crimson forehead could be seen.

**_"- LETTER FROM DUMBLEDORE LAST NIGHT, I THOUGHT YOUR FATHER WOULD DIE OF SHAME, WE DIDN'T BRING YOU UP TO BEHAVE LIKE THIS, YOU AND HARRY COULD BOTH HAVE DIED "_**

Even though we were stuffing our ears, the sound made itself through, making every word audible.

**_"-ABSOLUTELY DISGUSTED - YOUR FATHER'S FACING AN INQUIRY AT WORK, IT'S ENTIRELY YOUR FAULT AND IF YOU PUT ANOTHER TOE OUT OF LINE WE'LL BRING YOU STRAIGHT BACK HOME."_**

A ringing silence fell. The red envelope, which had dropped from his hand, burst into flames and curled into ashes. A few people laughed including us and, gradually, a babble of talk broke out again.

We had no time to dwell on this; Professor Snape was moving along the Slytherin table, handing out course schedules. Draco snatched mine before I had wrapped my hand around the parchment and smirked.

I rolled my eyes and punched his shoulder gently before taking it back. On the schedule I saw that we had double Herbology with the Gryffindors first.

"Great." Lydia said sarcastically, and we left the castle together.

We crossed the vegetable patch, and made for the greenhouses, where the magical plants were kept. Nearing the greenhouses we saw the rest of the class standing outside, waiting for Professor Sprout.

"Wait, we're like working with _earth_?" Lydia gasped, squirming around.

"What did you think Herbology meant?" A voice snapped, and we spun to face Pansy.

"Hello _Draco_." She said, waving.

"Er-"

"Go away Pansy Ramsey." I said, crossing my arms.

"Don't call me that!" She yelled angrily, making a face that resembled a fat cow.

"Then what else will make you leave us alone?" Lydia spat.

"Alright students!" Sprout's voice suddenly called.

Relieved, I turned to see her walking down to us.

Professor Sprout was a squat little witch who wore a patched hat over her flyaway hair; there was usually a large amount of earth on her clothes and her fingernails would have made Mother faint. Gilderoy Lockhart, however, was immaculate in sweeping robes of turquoise, his golden hair shining under a perfectly positioned turquoise hat with gold trimming.

"Greenhouse three today, chaps!" said Professor Sprout, who was looking distinctly disgruntled, not at all her usual cheerful self. Most likely because of Lockhart, he was basically at her heel.

There was a murmur of interest. I raised in eyebrow in question.

We had only ever worked in greenhouse one before - greenhouse three housed far more interesting and dangerous plants. Professor Sprout took a large key from her belt and unlocked the door. I caught a whiff of damp earth and fertilizer mingling with the heavy perfume of some giant, umbrella sized flowers dangling from the ceiling. Lydia grabbed my arm and squeezed, clearly scared of all the plants and dirt.

We walked in and pushed through to the middle area, using Crabbe and Goyle as shields. We put on our gloves and I laughed as Lydia struggled to put hers on, using only her forefingers and thumbs to touch them.

"Ew. Ew. Ew." She whined, frowning.

"Lydia, grow up." Draco said, chuckling.

Professor Sprout was standing behind a trestle bench in the center of the greenhouse. About twenty pairs of different-colored ear muffs were lying on the bench.

"I call pink. At least let me have that." Lydia sighed, fixing her hair.

"We'll be repotting Mandrakes today. Now, who can tell me the properties of the Mandrake?" She asked, and I lifted my hand slightly, knowing Granger would be waving her hand around as well.

"Mandrake, or Mandragora, is a powerful restorative," she said, sounding as usual as though she had swallowed the textbook. "It is used to return people who have been transfigured or cursed to their original state."

"Excellent. Ten points to Gryffindor," said Professor Sprout. "The Mandrake forms an essential part of most antidotes. It is also, however, dangerous. Who can tell me why?"

This time I shot my hand up, determined to beat Granger. And to my pleasure I did.

"The cry of the Mandrake is fatal to anyone who hears it," I said promptly.

"Precisely. Take ten points for Slytherin," said Professor Sprout. "Now, the Mandrakes we have here are still very young."

She pointed to a row of deep trays as she spoke, and everyone shuffled forward for a better look. Everyone except Lydia, who was angrily hanging in the back, with her arms crossed and face annoyed. A hundred or so tufty little plants, purplish green in color, were growing there in rows.

"Everyone take a pair of earmuffs," said Professor Sprout. "When I tell you to put them on, make sure your ears are completely covered," said Professor Sprout. "When it is safe to remove them, I will give you the thumbs-up. Right - earmuffs on."

There was a scramble as everyone tried to seize a pair that wasn't pink and fluffy. Lydia happily took hers, putting it on without whining. I reached over and grabbed a pair, when Draco came up behind me and gently placed some over my ears, smiling and blushing slightly.

I giggled and did the same to him, fixing his hair that was slightly tussled out of place. The earmuffs shut out any sound completely. Lydia elbowed us suddenly, smirking, then pointed to Professor Sprout.

She had on some pink, fluffy pair over her own ears, then rolled up the sleeves of her robes, grasped one of the tufty plants firmly, and pulled hard.

I saw Lydia's fingers curl in disgust and her face turned slightly green.

Instead of roots, a small, muddy, and extremely ugly baby popped out of the earth. The leaves were growing right out of his head. He had pale green, mottled skin, and was clearly bawling at the top of his lungs.

Professor Sprout took a large plant pot from under the table and plunged the Mandrake into it, burying him in dark, damp compost until only the tufted leaves were visible. She then dusted off her hands, gave us all the thumbs-up, and removed her own earmuffs.

"I think I'm totally going to be sick." Lydia said, closing her eyes.

"As our Mandrakes are only seedlings, their cries won't kill yet," Sprout said calmly as though she'd just done nothing more exciting than water a begonia. "However, they will knock you out for several hours, and as I'm sure none of you want to miss your first day back, make sure your earmuffs are securely in place while you work. I will attract your attention when it is time to pack up.

"Four to a tray - there is a large supply of pots here - compost in the sacks over there - and be careful of the Venemous Tentacula, it's teething."

We looked at each other in thought since we were five.

"That's fine..." Said Lydia softly. "I think I'll just like pretend to work..."

"Just relax." I told her, rubbing her back.

After that we didn't have much chance to talk. Our earmuffs were back on and we needed to concentrate on the Mandrakes.

Draco pulled his out with struggle, and once he did, he made the mistake of sticking his finger in it's mouth. He winced, then angrily stuffed the Mandrake in its pot. You of course couldn't hear a word, yet I was laughing as he had his incident.

Professor Sprout made it look extremely easy, but it wasn't. The Mandrakes didn't like coming out of the earth, but didn't seem to want to go back into it either. They squirmed, kicked, flailed their sharp little fists, and gnashed their teeth.

By the end of the class, Draco Crabbe, Goyle and I were sweaty, aching, and covered in earth. Lydia was trying to restore her calm breathing, and kept her distance from us as we trekked back to the castle for a quick wash.

"That was nearly impossible!" Crabbe exclaimed as we headed to Defense Against Dark Arts.

"My back actually hurts." I sighed, adjusting my books.

"Oh, here," Said Draco, taking my books from my hands. "Let me carry them."

"That's sweet, Dracey." Lydia giggled, and before we could respond, a high pitched voice caught out attention.

" -could stand next to you? And then, could you sign it?"

We rolled our eyes and Draco placed my books on a bench near the patio, stalking over to Potter.

"Signed photos? You're giving out signed photos, Potter?"

We followed behind him, Crabbe and Goyle flanking us. We snickered and saw Potter begin to get red in the face.

"Everyone line up!" Draco roared to the crowd. "Harry Potter's giving out signed photos!"

"No, I'm not," said Potter angrily, his fists clenching. "Shut up, Malfoy."

"You're just jealous," piped up a small Gryffindor, whose entire body was about as thick as my broomstick back home.

"Jealous?" said Draco, who didn't need to shout anymore: half the courtyard was listening in. "Of what? I don't want a foul scar right across _my_ head, thanks. I don't think getting your head cut open makes you that special, myself."

Lydia and I laughed while Crabbe and Goyle were sniggering.

"Eat slugs, Malfoy," said Weasley angrily.

"Watch your mouth." I snapped, standing besides Draco.

"Be careful, Weasley," sneered Draco. "You don't want to start any trouble or your Mommy'll have to come and take you away from school." He put on a shrill, piercing voice. _"If you put another toe out of line' - "_

A knot of Slytherin fifth-years nearby laughed loudly at this, and I snickered appreciatively.

"Weasley would like a signed photo, Potter," I smirked. "It'd be worth more than his family's whole house -"

"What's all this, what's all this?"

Gilderoy Lockhart was striding toward us, his turquoise robes swirling behind him.

"Who's giving out signed photos?"

Then Lockhart flung an arm around Potter's shoulders and thundered jovially, "Shouldn't have asked! We meet again, Harry!"

Smirking, we picked up our books and slid back into the crowd.

"Come on then, Mr. Creevey," said Lockhart, beaming at him. "A double portrait, can't do better than that, and we'll both sign it for you."

Creevey fumbled for his camera and took the picture as the bell rang behind us, signaling the start of afternoon classes.

"Off you go, move along there," Lockhart called to the crowd, and we began to walk, laughing at Potter's embarrassment.

"He so self-centered." Lydia scoffed, walking into the class and sitting down.

There was only two to a table, and Lydia had sprawled her feet on the other chair besides her.

"Like sorry, Van. My feet are so dead." She sighed apologetically.

"That's alright. I'll sit with Draco." I said, taking my seat.

He smiled and sat down besides me right as Lockhart walked in, grinning widely.

He reached forward, picked up Longbottom's copy of Travels with Trolls, and held it up to show his own, winking portrait on the front.

"Me," he said, pointing at it and winking as well. "Gilderoy Lockhart, Order of Merlin, Third Class, Honorary Member of the Dark Force Defense League, and five-time winner of Witch Weekly's Most- Charming-Smile Award - but I don't talk about that. I didn't get rid of the Bandon Banshee by smiling at her!"

I raised an eyebrow and heard a few people laugh softly, while others gave weak smiles. Draco made a face and shook his head in disappointment.

"I see you've all bought a complete set of my books -well done. I thought we'd start today with a little quiz."

I groaned and Lydia slammed her feet down in annoyance.

"Nothing to worry about just to check how well you've read them, how much you've taken in -"

"I didn't even read them!" I said under my breath.

"I don't think anyone did." said Draco.

When he had handed out the test papers he returned to the front of the class and said, "You have thirty minutes - start - now!"

I glanced down and read the fort few questions before crossing my arms in irritation.

_1. What is Gilderoy Lockhart 's favorite color?_

_2. What is Gilderoy Lockhart's secret ambition?_

_3. What, in your opinion, is Gilderoy Lockhart's greatest achievement to date?_

On and on it went, over three sides of paper, right down to:

_71. When is Gilderoy Lockhart's birthday, and what would his ideal gift be?_

"How am I like supposed to know this?" said Lydia behind us.

Half an hour later, Lockhart collected the papers and rifled through them in front of the class.

"Tut, tut - hardly any of you remembered that my favorite color is lilac. I say so in Year with the Yeti. And a few of you need to read Wanderings with Werewolves more carefully - I clearly state in chapter twelve that my ideal birthday gift would be harmony between all magic and non-magic peoples - though I wouldn't say no to a large bottle of Ogdeds Old Firewhisky!"

"Harmony, ha!" I hissed, and Lockhart gave us another roguish wink.

Draco was looking at him with disbelief; Crabbe and Goyle were shaking with silent laughter.

"... but Miss Hermione Granger knew my secret ambition is to rid the world of evil and market my own range of hair-care potions - good girl! In fact-" He flipped her paper over, "full marks! Where is Miss Hermione Granger?"

I slammed my fist against the table in annoyance, making the ink bottles shake slightly.

"Excellent!" beamed Lockhart. "Quite excellent! Take ten points for Gryffindor! And so - to business -"

"Take ten points for Gryffindork." Draco mimicked, making us chuckle.

He bent down behind his desk and lifted a large, covered cage onto it.

"Now - be warned! It is my job to arm you against the foulest creatures known to wizardkind! You may find yourselves facing your worst fears in this room. Know only that no harm can befall you whilst I am here. All I ask is that you remain calm."

In spite of myself, I leaned around my pile of books for a better look at the cage. Lockhart placed a hand on the cover. Lydia began to lower her head cautiously.

"I must ask you not to scream," said Lockhart in a low voice. "It might provoke them."

As the whole class held our breath, Lockhart whipped off the cover.

"Yes," he said dramatically. "Freshly caught Cornish pixies. "

A Gryffindor couldn't control himself. He let out a snort of laughter that even Lockhart couldn't mistake for a scream of terror.

"Yes?" He smiled at him.

"Well, they're not - they're not very - dangerous, are they?" The Gryffindor choked.

"Don't be so sure!" said Lockhart, waggling a finger annoyingly. "Devilish tricky little blighters they can be!"

The pixies were electric blue and about eight inches high, with pointed faces and voices so shrill it was like listening to a lot of budgies arguing. The moment the cover had been removed, they had started jabbering and rocketing around, rattling the bars and making bizarre faces at the people nearest them.

"Oh no." I moaned, seeing Lockhart place his hand at the cage door.

"Right, then," Lockhart said loudly. "Let's see what you make of them!"

And he opened the cage.

It was pandemonium. The pixies shot in every direction like rockets. Two of them seized Longbottom by the ears and lifted him into the air, which would've been hilarious if it wasn't for the fact that several shot straight through the window, showering the back row with broken glass.

The rest proceeded to wreck the classroom more effectively than the danger of poking a sleeping dragon. They grabbed ink bottles and sprayed the class with them, shredded books and papers, tore pictures from the walls, up-ended the waste basket, grabbed bags and books and threw them out of the smashed window.

Lydia and I were hit with sprays of ink, Draco had been hit with a book and Crabbe and Goyle were showered in papers and quills.

Within minutes, half the class was sheltering under desks and Longbottom was swinging from the iron chandelier in the ceiling.

"Come on now - round them up, round them up, they're only pixies," Lockhart shouted.

"_You_ do it!" Crabbe yelled, ducking under a table.

Lockhart rolled up his sleeves, brandished his wand, and bellowed,

"Peskipiksi Pesternomi!"

It had absolutely no effect; one of the pixies seized his wand and threw it out of the window, too. Lockhart gulped and dived under his own desk, narrowly avoiding being squashed by Longbottom, who fell a second later as the chandelier gave way.

"My father will h-"

Draco's words were cut short as the bell rang and there was a mad rush toward the exit. We pushed through everyone and ran towards the empty corridors, catching our breaths before realizing how ridiculous we looked.

Lydia's perfectly brushed hair was now covered in knots, doused in ink with a quill sticking out from the back. Her face was equally smeared with ink and she seemed close to tears when she saw her reflection in the corridor floor. Crabbe and Goyle had paper cuts along their cheeks and fingers, with even more parchment stuck around their hair. Draco had a large bruise on his nose, with scratches along his face.

"Stupid, good-looking Lockhart." Lydia sniffed, heading to the Common Room.

**~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•**

**Jeez, a lot of chaos in this chapter! Now, I still need more entries for the cover art. ****_BallaSiebenaler_****, you haven't answered my PM's but please get back to me on that! I love your drawings!**

**Also, thanks to those who reviewed and PM'd me! Means a lot(:**

**• Q.O.C...**

**-Anything in particular that you would like to be added? (As in maybe a HP joke, a big funny foreshadow?)**

**Thanks for reading, remember to R&R, F&F and Never Tickle A Sleeping Dragon!**


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